OPTICAL COMMUNICATION-SYSTEMS FOR AVIONICS

Avionic information processing and transmission requirements are incre asing geometrically, with no end in sight. The only feasible way to me et them is to incorporate fiber-optic communication systems into avion ic platforms. Such systems can be employed to replace standard electro nic components, to augment existing systems, or to enable new technolo gies. In this paper, we survey the field of low-power communication sy stems from the avionics engineering perspective, We review the fundame ntal merits of optical fiber for information transmission and discuss various information modulation schemes, These modulation techniques de termine the performance requirements for laser transmitters. We descri be the horizontal-and vertical-cavity semiconductor lasers currently a vailable for these systems, and measure their performance against the additional environmental constraints of avionics platforms. Finally, w e outline expected near-and far-term trends in system and device devel opment.